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If you have been looking for Diversified Bonds funds, a place to start could be PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A (PCLAX - Free Report) . PCLAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify PCLAX in the Diversified Bonds category, an area that is rife with potential choices. Diversified Bonds funds offer exposure to a wide variety of fixed income types, stretching across various issuers, credit levels, and maturities. Generally speaking, bond funds here will have sizable exposure to government debt, as well as modest holdings in the corporate bond market too.
History of Fund/Manager
PIMCO Funds is based in Newport Beach, CA, and is the manager of PCLAX. The PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A made its debut in June of 2010 and PCLAX has managed to accumulate roughly $104.14 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Nicholas Johnson is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2010.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.68%, and is in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 4.47%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. Over the past three years, PCLAX's standard deviation comes in at 28.65%, compared to the category average of 15.56%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.98% compared to the category average of 12.94%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
PCLAX carries a beta of -1.04, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 11.36, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, PCLAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.19% compared to the category average of 0.85%. PCLAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A ( PCLAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Diversified Bonds, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is PCLAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If you have been looking for Diversified Bonds funds, a place to start could be PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A (PCLAX - Free Report) . PCLAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify PCLAX in the Diversified Bonds category, an area that is rife with potential choices. Diversified Bonds funds offer exposure to a wide variety of fixed income types, stretching across various issuers, credit levels, and maturities. Generally speaking, bond funds here will have sizable exposure to government debt, as well as modest holdings in the corporate bond market too.
History of Fund/Manager
PIMCO Funds is based in Newport Beach, CA, and is the manager of PCLAX. The PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A made its debut in June of 2010 and PCLAX has managed to accumulate roughly $104.14 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Nicholas Johnson is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2010.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.68%, and is in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 4.47%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. Over the past three years, PCLAX's standard deviation comes in at 28.65%, compared to the category average of 15.56%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.98% compared to the category average of 12.94%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
PCLAX carries a beta of -1.04, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 11.36, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, PCLAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.19% compared to the category average of 0.85%. PCLAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, PIMCO CommoditiesPlus Strategy A ( PCLAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Diversified Bonds, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.